HUBBARD STREET DANCE WORLD

Пребывание настроилось ...

2011-11-12T07:54:00.001-06:00

Stay tuned as we head off to our next adventure to St. Petersburg...

Not this one....

This one...

And to tide you over, here are a few pictures from our last tour to Santa Barbara, Las Vegas and New York. (They are in reverse order....)

Coming home to Chicago. (And yes, a flight attendant did get mad at me for having my phone out)

I love the throwback plane. Very classy American Airlines.

Leaving NYC

Some of Hogan's designs on some lovely HSDC women (and Hogan's sister)

Some old friends stopped by at Hogan's party in NYC.

Even more friends. NYC.

What a glorious day.

Rockafeller.

Times Square.

City Center & Merideth.

Garrett striking a pose in our fancy hotel in NY.

On our way from Vegas to NY.

Close friend & former HS2 dancer, Miguel Perez @ the Chandelier Bar at the Cosmopolitan, Las Vegas.

Chair of Dance at UNLV, Louis Kavouras & Caicos. Louis & Michael (not shown) threw us a great party in Vegas.

Ready to bus it from Santa Barbara to Vegas.

Jac's Aunt and Aunt's friend threw us another great party in Santa Barbara.

California always seems to come through with the awesome hospitality.

April & crew setting up the fabric for another run of Petite Mort

Glenn & dancer watching April & crew.

Fun signs in Santa Barbara.

Pablo has a huge mouth!

Christian's Princess Leia look, waiting to board.

Happy Jessica.

And the tour begins...

J.Ho

Still Alive & Kicking... Well Sort Of...

2011-10-12T23:32:00.002-05:00

Yes, yes, yes, I have still managed to not keep so current with the blogging. Here's the run-down in a nutshell:

Ben & Laura have left the company - but have no fear! David & Alice, previously from the second company, have joined us along with Garrett Anderson (who has already amassed a plethora of nicknames).
We have a new website! (See? I'm not the only one that is was behind the times!) You'll definitely want to check it out. www.hubbardstreetdance.com
Our new season has started and we perform TOMORROW! So get your tickets!
Why?
Because we've been working with Twyla Tharp for the past month creating a brand new work entitled Scarlatti. (In case you've been living under a rock and don't know about Twyla, read here.)

... And that's why I'm sort of alive right now. Being in the theatre all day rehearsing and teching the piece isn't so nice on the body. But, no time for aching! Up and at 'em tomorrow for the premiere!

Here's some pictures and posts of the press we've gotten lately for all you 'out-o-towners':

Dance Magazine

(Behind the scenes video for the cover shoot)

Time Out Chicago

Chicago Tribune

(Former ballet dancer, Presidential Chief-of-Staff & current Mayor of Chicago, Rahm Emanual stopped by to watch rehearsals. AWESOME!)

The list goes on of news papers, bloggers, reviewers, etc...

But enough of all that! Come out & enjoy the evening for yourselves! Until then, I'm going to get some ice, some Aleve & and some sleep. And as always...

"Stay classy, World!"

J.Ho

Impressions On Priority

2011-04-01T23:44:00.000-05:00

Our tour to Santiago has been going very smoothly so far. (Knock on wood.) I've realized that I have yet to show our venue, so I shall do that in this posting. As you may know, the major earthquake last year heavily damaged the theatre and the state has been busy rebuilding (and improving) it. I've been though a lot of different areas of the theatre (it not only houses the theatre, but a ballet company, opera, symphony & more), and I'm in amazement at what is possible with the support of government. Without getting into politics, I'd say that the US could spend a little less on deconstructions and invest more into the arts; be more supportive of the beauty in creating rather than the misery of destroying.

One can definitely 'feel' a theatre & see how it portrays that's country's attitude towards the arts (, especially dance in this instance). As an example, more often than not, while in the States when conversing with laymen, after telling them that I'm a professional dancer the response is usually in the manner of, "... Oh that's nice... What else do you do... Is that like stripper or?..." Whereas in a place such as Santiago, being a dancer is somewhat revered by the masses (of course not by everyone, but). Just the other day I was eating at a restaurant by the theatre & a sweet old couple started talking to me in broken English while I tried to respond in broken Spanish. After I told them that I was a dancer from Chicago, performing at the theatre, they were sincerely delighted, wished me great luck & shook my hand. It really moved me.

Perhaps one day in the US - when budgets are tight - schools won't always cut music & the arts. City's will take pride in building grand theatres and museums & reality television will be replaced by live experiences outside of 'a box'. Perhaps one day...

Buenos noches.
J.Ho

Altruism Abroad

2011-03-30T22:54:00.000-05:00

My last post contained no pictures, so I thought I'd do another post of today's events with lots of pictures.

I'm currently reading The Price of Altruism, and it was only fitting that altruism was a theme today. (I should also say that the word 'altruism' is one of my favorite words.) A year ago when we were supposed go to Santiago, there was a major earthquake that postponed our tour to now. We asked our audiences at our home season at the Harris in Chicago to donate money for the theatre and company, & our patrons were very altruistic in their giving. With the money that was raised, we were able to buy them a piano - a tool that is essential in ballet.

... I thought this was going to be a more eventful posting, but seeing as loading those last three photos took 50 minutes (including moving the antenna on the wireless router down the hall), I'm off to bed before 1am...

Buenos noches.

J.Ho

Clase con la Compañía

2011-03-30T21:02:00.000-05:00

Somehow I was talked into taking company class with the Ballet de Santiago by Penny & Pablo. (Meredith joined as well.) What was worse, was that I learned that there was a men's class & a women's class that day. So not only would I be taking class with a national ballet company, but with only men as well. Although we take ballet every day at Hubbard Street, I wasn't trained as a ballet dancer nor do I consider myself a ballet dancer. Needless to say, I was intimidated before even starting the class.

Thankfully I was with Pablo, who is fluent in Spanish (obviously - he's from Argentina in case you didn't know), and he was able to find out where to go and talk with a few of the guys that were in the room warming up to make sure we wouldn't stand in anyone's spot at barre. Slowly as more and more men entered the room, the testosterone got thicker and thicker, and I though, " What am I doing here? Why the...." Well I can't write what I was thinking completely on this PG rated blog, but I was scared needless to say. Perhaps of not being good enough, of being judged or anything I suppose.

Once the class started, I kept telling myself, "to just relax; enjoy the class; and the only 'competition' is with yourself." By the time barre ended - only 25 minutes into class; we usually are at barre about 40 minutes per class for our company classes - I had relaxed & started to enjoy myself. Although I still felt a lot of judgement happening, I don't believe it was bad - simply curiousness, unknowns.

By the end of class, I was quite pleased that I did go and take class. I believe it was good to push me out of my comfort zone a bit & it was definitely refreshing to take a completely different class than we're used to & meet a lot of new and talented dancers. In the end everyone was very nice to us & we had a great time - even though it was extremely hot in the studio.

If there are any dancers out there reading this blog, I hope that you too will find the strength, not be scared, and take different classes; because in the end, you're really only in competition with yourself.

Buenos noches, Mundo.

J.Ho

PS I really wish I knew mas Espanol

2011-03-29T21:55:00.000-05:00

Hola once again! I am currently writing from my room at the Hotel Galerias in sunny Santiago, Chile. We arrived yesterday morning after our long flight. Luckily I, as well as some others, was lucky enough to get some sleep. It helped that the movie they were supposed to show first - "The King's Speech" - didn't in fact play first and that the screen for the center row (where I sat along with Stephan) was too big for the movie source and the pictures were so pixelated that it wasn't even possible to watch. I find it much nicer to fly longitudinally rather than latitudinally because no one likes jet lag.

After getting all the bags, going through customs & immigration we stepped outside and alas(!) there was sun. Living in Chicago (winters) makes me appreciate the sun so much more. Matt (lighting) had a great remedy for blocking the sun from his eyes while at the same time keeping perfect 20/20 vision...

What do you think? :) It gave us a good laugh... Once we arrived at the hotel - sans major jet lag - we decided to head out and explore some of the city. I ended up heading out with Jesse, Jessica, Kellie & Christian. Here are some photos of the sights we saw:

Time seems to fly while out-and-about. By the time we got back to the hotel it was the early evening & we decided to hit the pool. Unfortunately when we got down there, we saw the the pool was quite small, cold and in the shade; although fortunately Kevin, Jacqueline, Jonathan & most of the crew were down there. By the time we left to head out for dinner/in-room picnic it was quite late....

And speaking of late, I've had another long day (without a siesta) and need to get some more rest. We have a long day tomorrow with a full tech and our first show. (Although it seems quite odd that all of our shows are at 7.00pm - we're used to having shows much later, especially when abroad.)

Stay classy, World! And buenos noches.

J.Ho

¡Vamos a Chile!

2011-03-27T18:18:00.000-05:00

Well hello, hello everyone. Yes I know, roll your eyes... "It's been forever!" "I didn't think you guys were still alive!" (That might be a little extreme.) But yes, we are in fact alive (in case you doubted) and are heading out for a week of performances - well 4 performances anyways - in Santiago, Chile.

We're currently in Atlanta right now enjoying the free wi-fi (pronounced 'we-fee', haha) at the food court while we have a layover for our direct flight to Santiago. There's been so much happening already too!

...

OK, so not so much so. But let's go over the low-down so far. First of all, Delta has THE WORST legroom that I've experienced. Perhaps some human origami would have solved that. What was worse was the 7' basketball player that sat next to me that was in my 'personal space'; but poor guy; he had to put his legs out into the aisle. Anyways, we made it safely to ATL and made it to where I am currently writing from - the food court. Thanks Qdoba for some free wifi (we-fee)!

Secondly, Kevin 'Shekels' Shannon told us he dreamt that his uncle made a lemon curry & 1/2 of 'Panda Express' (a nickname for Jessica 'j.to' Tong & Robyn Mineko Williams' duet in Azsure Barton's "Untouched" - or "Don't Touch Me" as we call it) ate some Panda Express...

...
...
As I'm writing this, I'm starting to feel badly for those news people that are reporting 'the news' though nothing news-worthy happened - you know what I'm talking about.

We're on a red-eye flight and will get in tomorrow morning. Hopefully the hotel does in fact have free wifi so keep your ojos open for updates!

Until then, "Stay classy, World!"

J.Ho

PS Breaking News - Christian's passport expires April 2nd, 2011. We don't leave until the 3rd; so it should be an interesting story. :)

PSS Sorry for the unfocused blog - it's been a while.

PSSS If anyone has any suggestions for us while in Santiago, 'comment' them to us!

PSSSS I don't think repeating the 'esses' is correct ;)

j to. to the rescue!

2010-08-28T00:06:00.000-05:00

hello fellow dance fans! this is jessica tong pinch-blogging for jason hortin here at jacob's pillow in becket, mass. i have to admit, i am a little nervous to be filling in for jason, as he is looking over my shoulder commenting on my disrespect for capital letters...haha....but please, bear with me.

we have been performing here since wednesday and have already knocked out 4 shows, with 3 more to go through the weekend. our program includes ohad naharin's tabula rasa, aszure barton's untouched, and the premieres of alejandro cerrudo's blanco and deep down dos. it is pretty rigorous, but we all feel very lucky to perform here at jacob's pillow, as it is a wonderful rite of passage for any dancer.

if you don't know about the pillow's history, you should check out their website to learn all about ted shawn and his founding of the area. we are performing at the ted shawn theatre, which is pretty much an old cozy barn, but it is packed with the spirits of those who came before us. the inside of the backstage area is lined with graffiti and signatures of all the companies that have performed here in its 78 year history. scouring the walls, we have found the tags of hubbard street dancers old school and new. it truly feels amazing to be in an historic place such as this.

but our performances have been hard, and thusly we treated ourselves to some friendly's sundaes for getting over our halfway hump...

Traveler Tip: reese's pieces sundaes from friendly's are Da Bomb!

the cozy women's dressing room (note the graffiti)

jac unifying with nature on the inside/out stage

j ho channeling ted shawn at the pillow rock

nino replicating an old ted shawn poster HSDC style for our latest tag

HSDC 2010 family portrait

thanks for visiting us here and reading my inaugural blog!

j ho will be back from his antarctic glacier freeze expedition soon!

cheers, j to

Koln? Koln. Koln... Kooooln!

2010-06-29T23:30:00.005-05:00

After our successful tour to Baden-Baden, Koln (Cologne) was our next stop. We arrived on Monday afternoon & had the rest of the day to shop. If you haven't been to Koln before & live in Chicago, just walk by the H&M about 7 times and the Zara store, 4 times, and you'll get an idea of what the shopping was like :) There was so much shopping & tourists and H&Ms and gelato and H&Ms and Zaras and H&Ms... Well you get the picture...

We met up with our good friend, Tanja Ruhl - who is lighting designer with the Forsythe Company. It's always good to be able to hang out with Tanja in person and not just 'chat' on Facebook.

Our show at at the Oper was sold out and seemed to be well received - even though it was bloody hot and there was no air conditioning. It felt like we were doing our show in a Bikram studio. (Cheers to our crew as well for a wonderful job all tour, especially in Koln!). We had some special guests there too - Nino's oldest sister & mother, Loti! It's been a year since I stayed with her in Madrid after our last huge tour, so it was really nice seeing her again. Also I can't not mention - Garret and Courtney - some of Penny & Pablo's dancer-friends that came from Brussels as well.

The internet at our hotel is very slow, so I'm going to stop typing and start posting some pictures as I need to have my last German breakfast. :(

Before I go, I have to mention that this was Anne Grove's last tour with us! :( She has done so much for us & we all truly appreciate everything this wonderful woman has done! Cheers to Anne & hoping that she always stay close to Hubbard Street Dance Chicago!

Hanging out at a rest stop on our way to Koln. (Hortin)

Tanja, Jessica & Robyn walking the streets of Koln. (Hortin)

... Contemplating the river... (Hortin)

A lovely street sign at night. (Hortin)

The Dom - a huge, beautiful Gothic cathedral in Koln. (Hortin)

"Stay classy, World!"

-J.Ho

Blue Skys/Grey Shirts

2010-06-26T18:01:00.007-05:00

Our advertisement around town. (Hortin)

Well, we've performed twice now here in Baden-Baden to excited, full houses! The weather has continued to be wonderful - 70's during the day and low to mid-50's during the night - and the theatre is amazing! The Festspielhaus was converted from a train station to a modern theatre but still retains some of it's 'old world' elegance.

Views of the Festspielhaus. (Hortin)

From a dancer's point of view, it's excellent because it's very, very clean; has many showers; incandescent lighting around the make-up mirrors; sprung floor with nice Marley; and best of all: A cantina. It's so nice to not have to worry about leaving the building to find a restaurant (that's probably expensive because it's near a theatre) and getting a good, inexpensive meal. I wish theatres in the US adopted this more.

The horrible view ;) outside the cantina at the theatre. (Hortin)

Beyond the wonderful, per diem saving cantina; our shows have been going very well. The first night we performed for a house of around 1400 with 1000 of those seats being kids (around 14 - 16 years old) as a major sponsor for the theatre bought them tickets. They were a great audience and were treated to a small 'educational' program featuring Alejandro Piris Nino, Jessica Tong & lead by Artistic Director, Glenn Edgerton.

The pieces in general went quite well & personally I was pleased with Untouched. (ie I remembered all of the partnering/steps) Somewhere in the piece I threw my neck out a bit and it's continuing to give me some problems. As long as I don't look right too much I'll be fine :) Walking Mad was especially hilarious as - during his first run in a new spot - Pablo forgot his other grey shirt that we have to change into behind the wall during the piece. Of course he didn't remember it until after the piece had started. Luckily he caught Anne Grove's (company manager) attention & the crew ran up to the costume rack to get his shirt. At the perfect timing, when only two lights were on - lighting Alejandro & Kellie's duet - Stephan wadded up the shirt and flung it to Pablo behind the wall! It was hilarious, and it provides a lot of banter for Pablo; so if you see Pablo any time too, make sure to give him a hard time about missing his grey shirt ;)

Today our performance was equally as good (if not a bit better). Of course things are always going wrong, but that's the beauty in live theatre. Things can go wrong and it's ok. We followed the performance with a dinner at a French restaurant (& supporting the US against Ghana). Unfortunately, the US lost and is out of the World Cup.

We have one more show tomorrow (preceded by the England - Germany match) and then head to Koln on Monday. I'm hoping to get one more post before then, but until that day:

"Stay classy, world!"

J.Ho

J.To doesn't have a phrase of the day, but does have a fierce pose straight off the bus by the theatre - Tyra would approve. (Hortin)

Relaxing in Baden-Baden

2010-06-24T08:49:00.006-05:00

Long time no post! It's Jason Hortin here again blogging after a long absence on the Hubbard Street Dance World blog. I hope everyone has been well :) Right now we are in Baden-Baden, Germany. We will be performing - Ohad's Tabula Rasa, Azsure Barton's Untouched, and Johan Inger's Walking Mad - at the Festspielhaus on Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

Although we've performed all of the pieces before, there are already some challenges ahead... The first one is the fact that we'll be working with another wall (that's already in Europe) for Walking Mad. If you've seen this piece before, from an audience point of view, you know that the wall is a major part of the piece and is heavily involved. Hopefully the differences between our wall and the one we'll be using this weekend won't be too different. I'll keep you informed.

The second major challenge that we face is that we're one man down coming here. Ben Wardell was feeling under the weather & unable to join us on this tour (we're hoping he'll be able to come for the second half of tour), so we have had to adjust parts in all three pieces. Christian Broomhall is doing Ben's spot (that he learned on Monday) and Brian Enos is going in Christian's spot for Tabula Rasa. For Walking Mad, spots are being shifted between Brian, Christian & Pablo Piantino - depending on casts. [We usually have 2 casts for each piece - A & B - along with covers. However because the company is so small right now, often many people in the 'A' cast are also doing either the same part, or a different part in the 'B' group.] And as for Untouched, I had to learn Ben's parts on Monday. I'm pretty nervous for it since I just learned in on Monday as well, hopefully all will go well.

Last night after some light naps, Julie (our physical therapist on tour with us right now), Becca (wardrobe) and I ran around town looking for a bar that was playing the US/Algeria match. Ok, we weren't running, but we were walking very briskly! Eventually I found the one bar -that a lot of other dancers were at - to catch most of the second half of the game. (They kept switching between the US game and the England/Slovenia game, grrr.) Luckily, the US won - we are all anxious to watch the game after our show on Saturday! GO USA!

Aside from our performances, we have been enjoying our 'acclimation day' off here so far. The spas are very well known and highly recommended! I enjoyed a few hours at Caracalla Therme (since the historic Friedrichsbad is closed undergoing renovation). The town as well as the weather is very nice.

Here are some snapshots that I took from my iPhone so far:

Christian & Kellie onboard United #944 from ORD to FRA. (Hortin)

Kevin "Shekels" Shannon wearing his 'Baby Carlos (The Hangover) sunglasses, ready to go. (Hortin)

Meredith and her carts at the airport. (Hortin)

A view down the street in Baden-Baden. (Hortin)

Entrance to Caracalla Therme. (Hortin)

I'll be back with another post within the next days, so until then...

"Stay classy, world!"

-J.Ho

PS I'm not rooming with J.To (Jessica Tong) this tour so I don't have a "phrase of the day". Perhaps next time I see her, I'll have to ask her for one!

Latest update on Deep Down Dos & the Summer Series program

2010-06-03T16:21:00.003-05:00

I want to make sure everyone has the latest update about Deep Down Dos. The dancers and I have been rehearsing Deep Down Dos here in the studios during the last few weeks, and all the sweat is paying off – I’m really pleased with the progress that has been made. As you may or may not know, Deep Down Dos was to receive its theatrical premiere during the Summer Series, June 3-6. We were unable to obtain the music rights needed and, instead, we have decided to commission our own recording of Mason Bates’ Music for Underground Spaces! This presents a really exciting opportunity to generate a recording that is customized for the dance in the same way the dance is customized for the music. It will take some time to get this together, so we are going to postpone presenting the theatrical premiere for the 2010-11 Season. I think it will be worth the wait, and I look forward to sharing it with you!

We still have an amazing Summer Series program in store for you: In place of Deep Down Dos, we will be performing Jorma Elo’s Bitter Suite, which was created for and premiered by the company in the fall of 2009. Throughout the Fall engagement Elo re-worked and tweaked Bitter Suite. If you are able to join us this weekend, you will be able to see the final version of Bitter Suite – something never before seen in Chicago. We will also dance the world premiere of Untouched created by the illustrious choreographer Aszure Barton. Aszure has been choreographing at Hubbard Street Dance Center since May and throughout the process, she has collaborated with each dancer independently and built a shared vocabulary for the ensemble based on these personal interactions. This has been a remarkable experience, which I feel is expressed through the piece!

If you're interested, check out these short clips of Untouched and Bardo before the performance!

After the Orchestral Premiere...

2010-05-17T18:58:00.003-05:00

Deep Down Dos with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. Photo by Todd Rosenberg.

I want to thank everyone who attended the performances of Deep Down Dos at the Symphony Center. I am so happy with how this work’s presentation alongside the CSO went, and one of the most rewarding parts of the experience was the audience’s reaction. The whole experience of working with the symphony was fantastic. This is the first piece I’ve created that has been performed alongside live musicians in this way, and it was a great learning experience that is sure to influence the way I approach my art in the future. One of the most intriguing parts of this process was working with the Maistro, Carlos Kalmar, music director of the Oregon Symphony and principal conductor of the Grant Park Music Festival in Chicago. We had to work very closely to determine the tempo at which the musicians should play the music so that it corresponds with the tempo of the choreography. The performance was truly collaborative – all the artists had to be aware of one another and respond to each other. In the end, it was amazing to have so many people doing their own individual art – the dancers, the musicians, the technical crew, the maestro – all to create one cohesive work of art. It was especially fun to share the experience with the composer, Mason, who played the electronic drum pad in the symphony that evening.

Now I look forward to preparing Deep Down Dos for its theatrical premiere, which will take place at the Harris Theater on June 3rd. The Harris will provide a completely different atmosphere for the piece, complete with lighting and technical elements. And now it’s time to get back to work putting those finishing touches on this piece!

It's finally here! The Orchestral Premiere with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra is this week!

2010-04-13T11:59:00.005-05:00

I am so glad that my new work, which I have titled Deep Down Dos, will have its orchestral premiere at Symphony Center this week . It is always such a rewarding moment when a new work finally meets its first audience. It is very challenging to talk about what I am trying to do with a dance I am creating – dance is a language in itself and it is difficult to use spoken or written language to describe it. This week the dance will finally have a chance to speak for itself, with performances at 8:00 on Thursday, April 15, Friday, April 16, Saturday, April 17, and at 7:30 on Tuesday, April 20. I hope to see you there!

If you haven't already watched these short video clips on the choreographic process, check them out now:

Ironing out the details... (by Alejandro Cerrudo)

2010-03-30T11:20:00.003-05:00

After a very busy four-week initial creative process in the studio, I am enjoying having some time now to iron out the details of my latest work with the dancers. My choreography for this piece is primarily based on the dancers’ feeling the progression, changes, and intricacies of the music. I think that the dancers’ ability to use their bodies to represent the sentiment of the music will certainly help dance audiences to develop a greater connection to this music, just as how seeing the dance performed alongside Chicago Symphony Orchestra musicians will help CSO audiences develop a stronger understanding of the art of dance.

Dancers Jacqueline Burnett, Benjamin Wardell, and Ana Lopez rehearsing Alejandro Cerrudo's new work.

The evolution of a piece (Alejandro Cerrudo)

2010-03-12T13:15:00.007-06:00

I’ve had a very productive couple weeks in the studio and have now completed the overall structure and basic feel of my new work. To me, there are three big moments in the evolution of a piece.

First, I work through the idea in my head as I listen to the music that I will be working with, in this case Music from Underground Spaces by CSO Resident Composer Mason Bates.

Then I bring it to the studio and it evolves immensely based on the process of putting it into action as well as the input of the dancers. For this work in particular all 9 dancers have played a major role in the creation of the choreography for the duets in the piece.

The next big stride a new work takes comes when the technical elements – especially lighting – are introduced. Right now I am towards the end of phase two of this process.

With the structure of the piece solidified, we can now work to make it cleaner and allow the dancers to evolve technically as they master the movement in the piece. I’m looking forward to watching their progress and seeing what surprises arise once we encounter lighting and the magic of the stage!

Photos: Alejandro Cerrudo working with dancers Pablo Piantino and Kevin Shannon.

Alejandro Cerrudo on his new work...

2010-03-05T12:41:00.006-06:00

Hey, it’s Alejandro Cerrudo! I’m the Resident Choreographer (and a dancer) here at Hubbard Street – you may have seen some of my works (Extremely Close, Off Screen, Lickety-Split) before. I’m currently choreographing a piece set to the music of Mason Bates that will be previewed at Symphony Center on April 15th, where Hubbard Street dancers will perform alongside the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. Over the next few weeks I’ll be writing about how it’s going here on the blog. Right now it’s a whirlwind of activity over here at the Hubbard Street Dance Center. (Read more on the upcoming performances with the CSO.)

While things are just starting to come together in the studio, so are some of the production elements. I have been working really closely with costume designer Branimira to develop a look for the piece that is simultaneously slick and rough, with the same contemporary feel as Mason’s music. Costuming for dance is often different than it is for theatre or movies- we want the costumes to compliment the dancers’ bodies, and also, for this piece, their natural personalities. The dancers in this piece aren’t playing characters, they are simply expressing themselves.

Brani has been kind enough to share her sketches with us – like the dance, the costumes are constantly evolving during the creative process!

Marl & More

2009-11-16T13:06:00.005-06:00

Touring life isn't as glamorous as it may sound. Case in point? Coesfeld, Germany. I suppose I should be more specific: Marl, Germany. If you can find it on a map, then a gold star to you!

It. Was. Boring.

Penny prepares dinner at one of the only restaurants open in town... The hotel room...

A monumental feast for three! (I hate too.)

But, when life brings you lemons - make lemonade... (Or squeeze them in peoples' eyes) In the end we managed to have a good time and even quasi-took over a bar that had "pool, darts & kicker"; which is known as 'foosball' back home. The bar-owner was extremely kind and even helped Director Edgerton order pizza! The show that we had in Coesfeld was extremely well received with multiple curtain calls and a good 'ole 'German Stomp' - where the audience all stomp their feet on the ground.

The theatre was also very nice with many showers and dressing rooms, clean backstage and nice house.

The house at the theatre in Coesfeld.

The stage in Coesfeld.

... But now we're in Friedrichshafen, Germany near the Austrian-Swiss border and the town is great! We had a day off today, [if it seems like we've had a lot of days off, we have. Part of our tour, Frankfurt, was canceled a while before the tour started.] and we all explored the town & did some shopping. Since it's been such a long tour, I've had to do some laundry a few times (I did laundry in Tel Aviv twice) and needed to do it one more time - only one pair of underwear left! Luckily there was one laundromat in town; and when I went, lo and behold there was Glenn doing laundry as well! Thank goodness too! Not only is he a great director and mentor, but also a good teacher on how to use/decipher instructions at a German laundromat!

Tomorrow we have a rehearsal day followed by our last show on the 18th before coming home on the 19th. (Did you follow that?) Hopefully I'll get to visit the Zeppelin Museum, as it was closed today. So you can get a sense of the town, here a few snapshots throughout the day. So until next time, "stay classy, World!"

View from directly outside the hotel.
Jessica Tong with Friedrichsafen in the background.

Jessica Tong enjoying some espresso from Aran - a great coffee shop - while Robyn M. Williams looks on.

A panorama of Lake Constance.

A panorama of Friedrichshafen.

...

...

... Oh, and advice for the future? Don't bet with the crew, as fellow crew member, Killroy, found out...

... Yeah, he doesn't normally dress like that...

-J.Ho

Den Haag Deux

2009-11-15T15:15:00.005-06:00

Penny and Pablo said not to mention them as I'm writing this blog post from Friedrichshafen, Germany. But for those who follow this blog, you'll get the inside scoop and know that they had another bedbug incident while in Den Haag. It wasn't as severe as the incident that they had a couple years ago while on tour in Italy, but they are definitely 'targets'. They'd prefer if you don't ask them about it, so don't let them know that you know... Or else!

Although this is being written from Germany, I still have yet to finish writing about Den Haag. (Shame on me!) I last wrote about our day off, but didn't mention too much about the actual work and tour. After our day off, we were back to work putting up the concert for the Holland Dance Festival. We performed at the Lucent Dance Theatre, which is the theatre that is attached to and where Netherlands Dans Theater (NDT) performs. It's a truly magical place! So much inspiring art has/is being performed there, that it was an honor to be included in the festival and get to dance on that stage!

The house of the Lucent Dance Theatre.

The actual stage was huge as well as having a sprung floor. Since we don't tour with a sprung floor, we have been dancing on rather hard stages that don't have much give. Generally it hurts the body quite a lot more - it was a nice change to have a softer stage.

For the Festival, we performed two shows - Bitter Suite, Off Screen, Slipstream, Gnawa - to sold out houses and got standing ovations (which aren't everything, but welcomed - especially by educated dance audiences) for both. Normally on this tour, we've only been performing 3 pieces a night, so having 4 - and all company pieces - was taxing but well worth it. In addition to Jim being there to see us, Jiri Kylian came backstage after our first performance to congratulate us. I'll have to admit that I was pretty starstruck! It's not every day that you get to meet a 'superstar'. (He was very nice and humble if you're wondering)

Also while we were in Den Haag, we sort of 'auditioned' for an upcoming piece that will be premiered in 2010 by Jiri: 27' 52". During our first ballet class to warm up for the day, Gerald Tibbs - director of NDT II - watched us from the house with Glenn. At the time, I didn't realize that he was looking to cast the piece. By the second day however, I did know; and thank goodness because not only was Mr. Tibbs there but so was Mr. Kylian! Talk about pressure! To make matters 'worse', after barre, they came up to the apron (on stage) to sit and watch the rest of class. I don't think I've taken a more anxiety-filled class; other than perhaps my audition at Hubbard Street. Overall, everyone did well and they seemed pleased...

On a last note, I briefly noted on all the support that the Festival had. I keep thinking about how wonderful it was for the entire city and country to support NDT, the festival and the arts in general. Throughout the city a lot of stores had their window-fronts decorated with various dance aspects relating to NDT. Some examples were old vintage costumes displayed, videos of performances being played in loops, projections on buildings, etc. It was very exciting to see! Not only was this evident in the display windows, but in the facilities that NDT had.

I don't want to say that our facilities back in Chicago are bad at all! Because I've been in BAD studios before. However, being in Den Haag at NDT's studios, I was absolutely blown away! The studios were spacious and numerous, the dancers had ample dressing rooms, there was a canteen, gym, lounge fully decorated (thanks to a reality show as Glenn told us) and plenty of office space! I suppose this is what happens when governments support the arts...

Anyways, I'm sorry this blog is sort of long, I leave you with some pictures before our second show - enjoy!

Brian, Christian and Alejandro on the way to the Lucent Dance Theatre (in background).

Penny and her iPod.

Kevin warming up before Off Screen with some tendus.

Terry working his arabesque while Kevin continues warming up.

Production manager, Todd Clark, before the show.

And as always, "stay classy, World!"

-J.Ho

"Greetings from Holland", from Germany!

2009-11-12T15:19:00.008-06:00

... Well actually, "Greetings from Germany"; but never mind that I'm actually blogging about our time in Holland a bit later, from Germany. After over half a day of traveling from Israel to Den Haag, I was pretty useless for the rest of the travel day. We had the following day off other than a special reception at the U.S. Embassy.

I spent the morning with Penny & Pablo (aka "P & P Music Factory") and walked with them to the train station as they needed to buy fare so that they could visit their friends in Antwerp. They don't make train stations in the US quite like those in Europe.

By the time we had finished getting the train tickets, it was before noon and the stores in town still weren't open for some shopping, so we decided to get some proper coffee since our hotel's coffee wasn't up to par. Even though the weather was a bit cooler and around noon the sun still wasn't directly above us, we decided to have our coffee outdoors. It's nice to go a quaint little coffee shop that isn't branded or decorated by corporate mandates - it was super cute! (And the coffee was really good to boot!)

Luckily the shops opened - quite a bit later than in the US - and proved to be 'fruitful'. It seemed like every shop had great clothes. Of course with the exchange rate and weak dollar, you have to think a little bit before making purchases. After a couple days of shopping, I did end up buying a nice winter coat and gift for my wife. (Sorry, no polls this tour as to what I should buy her.)

Although the day was a day off, we did have a required reception at the US Ambassador's Residence. It was the first time I had been to an official gathering and I wasn't disappointed. In addition to Hubbard Street being there, there were many people from various government groups, and some "old friends"...

... Former Artistic Director of Hubbard Street and current Director of Netherlands Dance Theatre, Jim Vincent, with his wife and daughter were there!

... Former HSDC dancers (and some of my best friends!) Jamy & Shannon where there as well! It was amazing seeing them & actually getting to hang out - I miss them dearly!

... Board President Marc Miller and his husband Chris came to the Hague to see us in action! As 'President', he made (ok, not really made) me take an 'official' picture of him and Laura under the regal Adams/Fireplace.

... In addition, some (newer) old friends were at the reception as well, including NDT resident choreographer, Paul Lightfoot.

It was a great night and I definitely hope to be invited to more state receptions! I'll leave you with some quick snapshots I took while roaming around with Penny & Pablo on our day off - I'm trying to get to bed before midnight at least one night this tour!

Until next time, "stay classy, World!"

-J.Ho

PS J.To's Quote of the Day (courtesy of the Holland Dance Festival) is "Dance is Magic!"

Dead Sea Revives

2009-11-10T04:02:00.009-06:00

On the morning of the 6th - very early - we hopped on a bus in Tel Aviv to head out to the Dead Sea and Masada with board members Tim & Meg Callahan. Our first stop was to Jerusalem to pick them up from their hotel as well as our guide, Avi, who was quite informative throughout the day.

After stopping in Jerusalem, we continued to Masada that quite a long history through various epochs. (Instead of going through all of them, just click on the "Masada" link to learn about it.) Most of us climbed up the "Snake Path" to the top while others took an easier route and took the cable car to the top. Either way, once up the mountain, the view was amazing & the fortress was intriguing and exciting to see! Here are some photos of the Masada leg of our trip.

If you look closely (and look past Terry looking sort of creepy ;) in the back), you'll see that they're 'presenting' butterflies. There were hundreds of them around the bushes.

The group right after climbing up to the top. Can you tell who did and didn't climb?

A view of the Dead Sea from Masada - sort of looks like the lunar surface a bit.

Another view from the top. The stone square below are ruins from the settlement of Masada.
Store rooms atop Masada that were built by Romans (or their slaves I should say).

Ben looking for a shot in the ancient synagogue atop Masada.

Jessica smiling for a quick pic along our tour of Masada.

Terry only brought his phone camera with him and reapplied his shirt to block the sun.

Tim & Meg's rabbi made HSDC Israel Tour shirts that we're sporting here on the watchtower on Masada. And 'yes', it pretty hot weather!

Right before heading down to the base on the cable car at Masada.

After we all took the cable car back down (have to save our knees), we stopped at the Ahava Factory Store before heading north a bit to a hotel-spa on the Dead Sea. If you're ever in Israel, a trip to the Dead Sea is a must! The feeling of floating atop water is an amazing feeling. Terry was joking that 'this is what it must feel like to be lifted,' as Terry - along with all the other guys int he company - are used always lifting women...

The water was so buoyant that at times, it could be hard to be stabilized in the water.

In addition to floating around, we covered ourselves in mud from the Dead Sea; again, another must! It's quite a fun process to rub essentially dirt and water on your body and go through the process of drying and then getting it all off. Once you do get the mud off though, in addition to the salt and minerals in the Sea, your skin feels amazing!

Let the mudding begin!

Jessica and Tim pose fully mudded. (Yes, 'mudded' isn't a real word)

Tim & the girls.

Meg & the boys.

Group shot! Yeah, we're not tourists or anything... Also, I think that Christian missed his legs.

As you can tell, we had a great time on our excursion to the Dead Sea & Masada! A huge thanks to Tim & Meg Callahan for the wonderful day off!

We have our first show in the Hague today and I need to get going to rehearsal; so next time I'll be updating about our first few days in Holland including a reunions and receptions at the U.S. Embassy.

So until next time, "stay classy, World!"

-J.Ho

HaiF(a)UN! More to Follow.

2009-11-07T11:49:00.012-06:00

Looking back at the last post, I realized that I sort of left everyone in the dark as to what's been going on since a couple of days ago; so here we go :)

Our second show in Haifa went much smoother than the first (in my opinion)! But let's start at the beginning of the day. Christian and I spent much of the - extremely hot - day walking around Haifa. Eventually after some coffee and walking down Mount Carmel, we actually walked by the Baha'i Gardens and they were open! They're extremely beautiful!

We walked to the downtown area after a couple hours and there was no way we were going to walk back uphill to the hotel; so we caught the subway that goes all the way up to the top of the Mount, near where we stayed and performed. That's where I saw this amusing bathroom sign for children...

As I had stated earlier, the show went much better the second night. It was a bit harder for myself (along with some other dancers) who had a 'Tobin' show. We affectionately call this a show where you perform in every piece in the night referring to past HSDC Dancer, Tobin Del Cuore! On top of it, we had ANOTHER strike-drive back to Tel Aviv! If you've been following the blog, you'll know my (ours really) disdain for strike-drives, so I won't continue...

We did make it to Tel Aviv a bit before 1am and some of the dancers decided to check out Tel Aviv's famous club scene. Needless to say, I wasn't one of them. And besides, we had a 7.30am call for an optional tour to the Dead Sea/Masada the next (or would it be the same?) morning...

Our Dead Sea/Masada trip will have to wait until another post as I've gotten about 7 hours of sleep in the past 3 days and we have just finished a 13+ hour trip to Holland where I'm currently writing from...

Grabbing a bite to eat after about 8 hours of traveling to Frankfurt; waiting for our flight to Amsterdam.

So until next time, "stay classy, World!"

-J.Ho

One of those days...

2009-11-04T15:35:00.011-06:00

The other day I mentioned that there was a slight mishap during the concert. It was during our show in Jerusalem on the 2nd. We performed Off Screen and had Bitter Suite after an intermission. During the intermission, Ana had a little pain in her chest but thought it would be all right and started Bitter Suite. Penny & I are in the other cast for Ana & Alejandro and got into costume ‘just in case’. The first few minutes seemed to be going well until after exiting upstage left. Then it was clear that she still wasn’t feeling good… So Penny & I went in ¼ into the piece! I think it was the first time I’ve ever covered for someone during a piece. We did the rest of dance, and although it wasn’t the best run we had, it went pretty well. And in case anyone is worried, Ana is fine now and has been performing. (She performed in the 3rd piece of that night, Gnawa, as well.)

We’re quite lucky when it comes to our board, because a few of them made the journey to Israel and took the company out to a lovely dinner, post-show. It was a great meal made even better by the great company! (I was too busy eating and conversing, so didn’t get any pictures.) We’re looking forward to our upcoming trip to the Dead Sea this Saturday with them!

After the 2^nd show in Jerusalem (yesterday), we had to strike-drive to Haifa. For anyone that doesn’t know what a ‘strike-drive’ is; in a nutshell, it’s where you drive after a performance. They’re not our favorite things to do as it hurts the body to have to sit down for a couple of hours right after an exhausting night of performing! Luckily (or not) for us, Israelis are crazy drivers – even by Chicago standards. I swear that in order to get your bus-driving license you have to have racing experience. We made it to Haifa just after 1am and quickly passed out in our rooms.

Waking up in Haifa, with the view from our hotel, which is atop Mount Carmel, is awesome! Since we had a show today, we didn’t have much time to sight see. I did go to the Baha’i Gardens, but the actual garden was closed today; so perhaps tomorrow. This is what I did see though:

Panorama view from Mount Carmel overlooking Haifa.

All of the Baha'i Gardens that I got to see.

We have a later call tomorrow so I’m hoping to visit some sights before having another show and strike-drive! (Ahhhh!)

Tonight’s show didn’t go so well – too many little mishaps – so instead of dwelling on that, I’ll just leave all of you in the blogosphere some photos of the theatres in Jerusalem & Haifa!

The theatre complex in Jerusalem.

The 'house' in Haifa.

Shot of the stage in Haifa before class.

-J.Ho

Walking the Day Off

2009-11-02T17:26:00.014-06:00

We've had an action packed last couple days here in Israel! We had Sunday to ourselves which was a nice change. Our presenter had set up a walking tour of the Old City of Jerusalem that 8 of us went on.

It lasted about four hours and we walked throughout all the quadrants & learned some of the history of the city. Our tour guide - Rafi, short for Raphael - was amusing and patient with our myriad questions of any and everything! Some of the highlights of the tour involved seeing ancient Roman ruins dug up from the Jewish Quarter; a small portion of wall from the 1st Temple; going to the Wailing Wall; accessing the Temple Mount - which we were very lucky to see as it's been closed lately because of Muslim/Jewish clashes, and it's only open for 1 hour/day on only certain days; walking along the Via Dolorosa to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. There's way too much information to write it up here, so if you're interested in any of the site, just click on them to learn more about them. Here's some photos from our tour.

Ancient Roman columns from a mall that were excavated.

The Western Wall (aka Wailing Wall) from above.

Our tour guide, Rafi, explaining to us sites on the Temple Mount. Pay attention Laura! :)

The Temple Mount.

The 5th Station along the Via Dolorosa.

It's amazing how much security is around the area! On the way up to the Temple Mount, they had piles of riot shields and there was probably a platoon or two (seriously!) of soldiers up there wielding full armor and machine guns. From my experience in one of the holiest places on earth, I would say that the largest religion by far is money. Everywhere, everyone is trying to sell and to many (not all, but many), the religious sights are merely there to draw in consumers.

Stacked riot shields on our way up to Temple Mount.

Penny, Pablo and Anna & Alejandro walking through some of the streets in the Old City of Jerusalem.

Following our day of walking, our presenter took the company out to a traditional Arabic meal. We had a great time and the food was quite good. I've definitely found some new foods that I'll have to try to find in Chicago.

Tonight we'll perform our last show in Jerusalem and then strike-drive to Haifa. There was some 'scares' performance-wise last night, but I'll wait until a new post to write about that.

So until next time, "stay classy, World!

J.Ho

Ohad-a-Rama and Friends

2009-10-31T18:09:00.006-05:00

Happy Halloween to everyone still in the U.S. celebrating! Robyn helped us get in the spirit (as well as a mystery 'treater' who gave us little candy bags. Company manager Anne Grove?) with her 'costume'...

We spent the day rehearsing, performing, and strike-driving amongst other things; and are currently in Jerusalem!

Our Tel Aviv performances are over after having 4 shows. In addition to the normal show day of ballet class and technically rehearsing pieces that are to be performed; we've been working Tabula Rasa with Ohad Naharin for our winter season. We were supposed to work with Mr. Naharin on Thursday, Friday & Saturday but didn't get to work with him again until Saturday. It's amazing how much someone can affect you in such a short time. Ohad is truly a master of his craft & it's been in honor working with him - even for such a short time. Hats off as well to the first cast of Tabula, that teched the piece on Saturday (on stage with lighting) for Ohad. His mastery combined with the extraordinary ability of the dancers made and will make for audiences fortunate enough to see it in the future an outstanding evening of artistry. Unfortunately I didn't take any pictures as I was fully engaged in the rehearsal.

In addition to working with Ohad, his company - Batsheva - will be going on tour (opening the Holland Dance Festival, where we'll be soon) for a month and had a showing of a piece that we attended. It was very inspiring to see 'gaga' (Ohad's dance technique that he developed) performed by the dancers!

As promised from an earlier post, here are some photos of the space in Tel Aviv:

In addition to the wonderful audiences, we were given flower bouquets for our last performance. Now I need to find a make-shift vase to put them in water! Speaking of water... Wow! The past few days in Tel Aviv have put Seattle's rain laden weather to shame. The showers have been torrential! I don't think that the sewer systems here are built to handle so much rain, which results in inches of standing water on the streets & sidewalks. It's also prevented many from enjoying the lovely beaches :(

But(!) you can't let the rain get you down. So what do you do? Laundry of course! Being on tour for 5 weeks in multiple climate zones is quite a challenge. Not only do you have to pack for hot and cold weather, but formal clothes - for dinners, receptions, etc - cold clothes, (some) dance clothes, electronics, converters; and keep within the weight restrictions of the airlines! Luckily for us, our hotel in Tel Aviv had two (yes 2!) laundromats within walking distance. I met up with Christian Saturday morning wash clothes (this laundromat was awesome! You could also rent movies & laptops, get coffee or pastries and get free wifi!) and saw that he had made a friend... An adorable dog!

"...You can't put a name on the innocence of a face like that..." (What movie is that from?)

... As I said earlier, I'm currently posting this from Jerusalem. We have a 'day off' tomorrow & many of us are going on a guided tour of the city & reception/dinner.

So until tomorrow, "stay classy, World!"

-J.Ho

PS J.To's phrase of the day, a la Lucas Crandall, "...Progression is always good..."

Tired/Inspired

2009-10-29T04:00:00.008-05:00

We've had our first few days here in Tel Aviv & things have started to settle in. After we arrived (after a literal day of travel), we had the next day off, which is officially and "acclimation day" to start getting accustomed to the new time change. I was surprised that I could actually sleep most of the night - what a relief! Since this is the first time most of us have been to Tel Aviv, we spent the day exploring the city. The weather here is a pleasant 70 degrees+ so that makes walking everywhere a bit easier.

On Tuesday, we had our first day of rehearsal with Ohad Naharin for Tabula Rasa. Everyone was quite nervous and wanted to leave a good impression. After Mr. Naharin arrived, we 'ran' the piece (essentially performed the entire piece) so that he could see what shape it was in. Luckily, although he had quite a few notes, seemed quite impressed with the integrity of the piece. To be around Ohad, seeing him move & hearing what he has to say, is quite inspiring! We'll be working with him again today before our show. Although our muscles & bones feel the pain of moving in different ways and intentions, it's quite rewarding!

Since the weather has been so lovely here, we couldn't not go to the beach! I'd say some of the best things in Tel Aviv are the beaches! It's about 12 shekels (about $3.17) to rent a lounger and about 6 shekels for a giant beach umbrella - very worth it.

When we were rehearsing with Ohad as well, I'll have to say that it was a bit hard at times focusing when the view from the studio was this:

Back to work... Yesterday (October 28th), we had our tech for the show. I didn't get to take a picture of the Opera House, but it's quite beautiful (and large). I'll get a picture of it today though. I'll have to say though, that our day seemed like one of the longest tech days! Our show wasn't until 9pm (we performed Off Screen//Slipstream//Gnawa) and the audience seemed to really enjoy the show. We even got the synchronized 'German' clapping at the end! We're expecting even larger audiences as the week goes on.

Post show, we had a small reception with food (which is always a welcomed sight after a show) and drink. Some board members from Chicago have come to Tel Aviv as well - so it was nice to see them!

Today the weather hasn't been cooperating as much - it's raining :( We have another show tonight so I'll have more to report in the following days. I'll leave you with these two last photos of the other day going around the market with Brian and his 'new friends'...

There are many feral cats roaming around the city... This black one was somewhat menacing...

I'd also like to put in a request to you, the dear follower of this blog. What would you like to know or seen written about? This blog is really for you, so please leave a comment on suggestions and requests!

And until next time, "stay classy, World!"

-J.Ho

PS J.To's quote of the day is postponed for a triumphant return at a later date :)

Skedaddle to Seattle and Onwards...

2009-10-25T14:50:00.010-05:00

Wow! So much has happened since I've last blogged. I suppose I should start from where I left off.

On Wednesday afternoon, we flew from Denver to Seattle. Thank goodness, because it actually started snowing slightly on Wednesday. Jacqueline's parents and grandmother greeted us at Seatac airport. That night, I went to eat dinner with my cousins and sister who live in Seattle. It's quite nice when we go on tour in a hometown - there's nothing quite like family.

Thursday was our first day off; and wow(!) was it great! If you haven't been to Seattle before then you're really missing out on a great city. I ended up meeting with Kellie and Christian and went around downtown, Pike's Place Market, the Space Needle, Dick's Drive-In, Pacific Northwest Ballet & rode the monorail.

Unfortunately I didn't have the entire day off as I taught a master class at Westlake Dance Center. I danced there for a little over a year while in high school, so it was pretty interesting going back as a guest artist and teach a class - what a blast from the past! Although I was pretty stressed out nearly the whole day preparing for the class, it went surprisingly well. It was heavily attended with probably 35+ students and they were so energetic, supportive & open that it was quite inspiring! Robyn also taught a master class, subbing for Laura, who couldn't as she was still in Chicago rehabbing an injury.

If Wednesday was all fun, then Thursday was all hard work. We performed at the extravagant Paramount Theatre in Seattle built in the 1920's; see for yourself:

The day started like any other 'tech day'. We had our daily ballet class followed by a short break, and then onto rehearsing the pieces in the concert (in this case: Lickety Split, The Set//Bitter Suite//Gnawa). This show was the first for the 'B' cast going into 'Bitter Suite', so we had to fully run the piece and go over notes. After rehearsing all the pieces and going over notes, we had break for dinner - we usually get 'deli trays' for dinner at the theatre.

The show started at 8pm and was going well until after the first intermission. Kevin had gotten sick from eating something for dinner and was throwing up a bit. We were unsure if he was going to be able perform 'Bitter Suite', but he pulled through and performed like a true professional. The entire show went quite well and the Seattle audience loved it all (or at least according to the thunderous applause)!

After the show, I had dinner with about 20 friends and family that came up to see the show. The rest of the company went to some of Jacqueline's family friends' house for a party. According to J.To, "Gombie (Jacqueline's grandmother) makes good lemon poppy seed pound cake!"

Saturday morning, we headed back to Seatac for the long flight to Tel Aviv via Frankfurt. Let's just say 18 hours later (and about 4 movies - The Hangover, Angels & Demons, The Great Buck Howard, & part of Appaloosa) we made it to Tel Aviv! It feels good to be done traveling, especially since Laura & Niño are with us again!

(Laura with her new notebook! Congrats Laura!)

Sorry this has been such a long post. I should be posting more often from here on out... I'm about to pass out from exhaustion, so until next time...

"Stay classy, World!"

-J.Ho

And J.To's phrase of the day is, "It is real, we are in Israel, and I don't know Hebrew!"

J.To's 'Phrase of the Day' Returns!!!

2009-10-21T12:05:00.002-05:00

Per request, here is Jessica Tong a.k.a. J.To's "phrase of the day"; I hope you enjoy! Also, here is a review from our shows in Chicago at the Harris in the Chicago Sun-Times; and also an article in my hometown newspaper - The Olympian.

"The Curtis Hotel puts the 'rad' in Colorado!"
-J.To

And as always, "stay classy, World!"
-J.Ho

Mile High Start - with photos!

2009-10-20T00:21:00.007-05:00

We're officially on tour now! And since we are, there will be quite a bit more posting on here in the following weeks - so keep checking back! We flew out of Chicago this morning and made it to Denver where the weather is excellent. It was nice to be able to enjoy the rest of our travel day walking around downtown, seeing the city. Our first (of fourteen) show is tomorrow, so I will post more (with photos) tomorrow. Ben took loads of pictures, so hopefully I'll get to put some of those up.

Meanwhile, enjoy some of these photos that our good friend, Tanja Rühl - lighting designer for the Forsythe Company in Frankfurt, Germany and "Extremely Close" by Alejandro Cerrudo - took of us rehearsing while on her visit to Chicago last week in preparation for tour....

Rehearsing Gnawa 'Clump'. Company (Tanja Rühl photo)

Gnawa - 'Women's section'. Kellie & Robyn, Meredith & Terry in background. (Tanja Rühl photo)

Gnawa - '2nd Trio'. Kellie & Ben. (Tanja Rühl photo)

Gnawa - '1st Trio'. Ana, Jason & Brian. (Tanja Rühl photo)

Gnawa - '2nd Section Duet'. Alejandro C & Robyn. (Tanja Rühl photo)

Gnawa - 'Duet'. Penny and Terry. (Tanja Rühl photo)

HSDC Dancer Jessica & our good friend (and great lighting designer, photographer) Tanja. (Tanja Rühl photo)

Lickety-Split. '3rd Duet'. Ben & Jacqueline. (Tanja Rühl photo)

Stay classy, World!

-J.Ho

PS J.To (Jessica Tong for the newbies) will hopefully be continuing her phrase of the day during our Israel, Holland & Germany portions of the tour!

Performing at the Harris...

2009-10-03T10:43:00.003-05:00

Hello fellow blog readers... Yes, yes, I know - it's been a while since the last post & they have been pretty infrequent during our time here in Chicago. Currently we've been performing at the Harris Theatre in Chicago to record level audiences! It's great that Chicago is starting to realize that even sans the 2016 Olympics, there are already world-class institutions within the city! We've already gotten one review by Lucia Mauro from the Chicago Tribune. If you haven't seen the program yet, there's still time! We have shows tonight at 8.00pm and tomorrow (Sunday) at 3.00pm.

After the Harris Fall season, we'll be in the studio for two weeks and then we'll head off on a 4+ week tour to Denver & Seattle in the U.S.; Tel Aviv, Jerusalem & Haifa in Israel; Den Haag in Holland; and Coesfield & Friedrichshafen in Germany.

And now, I have to ask your help. Since this blog is new, we're not sure what exactly people think about it and so I'd like to ask you to leave comments and/or contact Erika at enelson@hubbardstreetdance.com if you'd like to see the blog continue!

Thank you and hopefully we'll see you at the Harris or somewhere around the world!

Cheers!
-J.Ho

Change

2009-09-03T18:27:00.005-05:00

Well hello there! I almost feel like I should re-introduce myself; it's been a while since I've written a post. That's not to say that a lot hasn't been going on however...

First off, I should mention that Larry Long passed away on August 22nd, 2009. Mr. Long was an outstanding ballet master, teacher & mentor and touched many dancers' lives. He was on the advisory board of Hubbard Street for many years & has taught many dancers that are currently in the company. He is greatly missed...

Larry Long

1936 - 2009

... With regards to the company, we started back to work after three weeks off after Italy with our new director - Glenn Edgerton. It's been a great transitition so far and we look forward to what direction he leads the company in the future. Jacqueline Burnett was also promoted from 'HSDCenter Apprentice' to the main company; so congrats to her as well! I remember my transition from apprentice to full company member very well - it was a dream come true.

We had our "Twilight on the Rooftop" at the East Bank Atheletic Club on August 19th. It was a great event with a large attendance! The chair for the event was Alyssa Rapp, creator of bottlenotes.com, and Board Member with us at Hubbard Street. Unfortunately the weather took a turn for the worse and the 'rooftop' became 'banquet room' - but the wine tasted just a great!

On the 29th, we participated in 'Dance for Life' here in Chicago to raise money for HIV/AIDS charities. We performed "Jardi Tancat" by Nacho Duato, for the first time (this year) & it was an astounding success!

Currently we have been putting together "Tabula Rasa" by Ohad Naharin that is quite strenuous yet quite fulfilling as an artist. I'm predicting it to be an audience favorite this season! (.... So make sure you see it at the Harris if you're in Chicago in December.) In addition to working on 'Tabula' we've had the pleasure of having the wonderful Jorma Elo in to create a new peice for the company.

Make sure to bookmark this blog as myself and other dancers will be posting while on tour (and we have a big 5 week tour coming up soon through the US, Israel, Holland & Germany), in the studio, on collaborations with the CSO and Art Institute and about all things Hubbard Street. If you want to know about anything, please feel free to e-mail me as well (hsdcblogger@hotmail.com).

And as always, "Stay classy, World!"

-J.Ho

PS J.To doesn't have a phrase of the day, but I'll create one for her... (in Dutch)

Welkom rug!

Welcome back!

Shout out 'Time Out'/Trailerpilot

2009-08-05T21:55:00.004-05:00

Hello fellow followers of this mini (yet mighty) blog. We're still on vacation so there's not much to write about, but I did get a nice little piece of information while at a soiree at Director Palmquist's. We got a mention in Time Out Chicago! Ok ok, so it might only be a mention, but hey - it's better than nothing! Now you can brag to all of your friends that you 'followed' us before anyone else knew! After some quick googling of the blog, I found that Trailerpilot also mentioned us a while ago. (The mention is about 2/3 down.)

[Small tidbit: Long-time Hubbard Street supporter Jonathan is mentioned as a single to date - probably because he loves HSDC :-)]

Make sure to get your ticket to Twilight on the Rooftop, today!

And as always, "Stay classy, World!"

-J.Ho

The Last Day

2009-07-29T13:51:00.014-05:00

I thought that I would create a fun little video of all the low-res videos that I shot of Jim's last class. However, after some minimal iMovie work, I discovered that it wouldn't be possible seeing that Blogger has a 100 megabyte movie limit. Ergo, I'm forced to just present them to you one at a time. I hope you enjoy - I know we did!

(Sorry for the shaky video. I'm trying to do the combination while filming - it doesn't work too well.)

A classic Jim Vincent look modeled by Penny Saunders:
You can notice the high pant + towel around the neck. Classic Jim! Nice form Penny!

Group picture sporting our 'Jim' look (high pant with towel accessory). The stars are from a party that we had for Jim back in Chicago with board members & supporters.

Our last day in Bolzano wasn't all just fun & games. We had to tech a completely different show - Slipstream, Extremely Close & Minus 16. It was nice to be in a real theatre as well (a nice one at that with showers, lights to put on make-up, bathrooms, etc).

Before each show, we all "circle" up usually around center stage and hear some words from Jim, Luke (or Glenn) followed by a speech from the company member who's been in the company the longest - Jamy. (Followed by some other traditions: 'merdes', hugs, etc) Since Extremely Close was first & it involves dropping (fireproofed) feathers, we had to have circle in the wings on stage right. It was quite sad seeing that it was Jamy, Shannon, Alejandro Nino & Karen's last circle. Luckily I wasn't in the first piece so I didn't have to worry about my stage make-up running. ("There's no crying in baseball!")

All the pieces went very well & the energy on stage was spectacular. The sold-out house enjoyed the performance immensely; as did we. (Is that grammatically correct?)

Now, as I'm writing this, we're on a much needed 3 week vacation. Some of the company is still in Europe while the rest are here in Chicago or scattered around the U.S...

I'd like to hear from anyone who had read this blog to let me know your thoughts, suggestions, etc. This is still a new thing for us & your input would be greatly appreciated. Please feel free to leave comments and/or e-mail me at HSDCBlogger@hotmail.com

For some shameless plugging, we're having our Twilight on the Rooftop. It was quite fun last year (the first year) & this year is looking to better than ever (or at least last year...) Basically it's the place to be. If you aren't there, you suck! OK OK, I'm just kidding - don't get worked up about it :) Anywho, visit here for the info.

Again let me know your thoughts! And as always...

"Stay classy, World!"

-J.Hor

PS And in keeping with tradition, here's the last Italian phrase of the day (sans J.To who is fired from the phrase of the day duties):

Grazie per lettura. Rimanga prego sintonizzato…
Thank you for reading. Please stay tuned...

...

2009-07-22T17:54:00.003-05:00

Hello to everyone out there! This is just a quick post to tell you, "Don't give up yet!"... I'm currently in Madrid (staying with HSDC Dancer - Alejandro Piris Niño's mother who lives here) for a couple more days of vacation. I will still post our exciting & emotional last day/show as the company as we've known it for the past year or so, so please stay tuned...

Until then "stay classy, World!"

-J.Ho

PS I might even blog about my time in Madrid as it can be an 'extension' of the tour!

The Last Supper

2009-07-20T19:12:00.009-05:00

... We finished our day off by going to a dinner hosted by our out-going Artistic Director, Jim Vincent. Around 8 p.m. the entire company - dancers, crew, Marco (our Italian liaison) - met at the Batzen Hausl. We had the entire first floor (which is the "second" floor in the US. In Europe, the '1st' floor is '0') to ourselves. It was an amazing, emotional bacchanal full of laughter, enjoyment & excellent house-made beers, wines & food.

Somehow between a couple rounds of beverages, I was taking pictures of people's - for lack of better words - "hidden talents". (This includes 'interesting' faces, actions, etc...) I suppose they're funny (to me at least) when they're thought of in the context of the evening; but I'll let you judge for yourself... (Disclaimer: Some photos might be disturbing... OK, not really; but now you've been warned)

Kellie's crazy fingers. Notice how not every knuckle is bent.

Our "champ" waiter Missimilaino Marroni who we affectionately named "Sassy Britches" shows off his arm twisting abilities.

Christian's extra stretchy elbow skin is just disturbing.

Kevin's rendition of the "Betch Face".

Karen can touch her nose with her tongue... And also look up at the same time :)

Marco's relaxed shutter-eye.

Terry's tri-tongue twisted.

D.Rock (Derek) might just need to see an ophthalmologist.

Jim's 'Zoolander' (?) pose? I think this one is 'Twisted Steel'.

J.To (Jessica) lost her lips. (Is that why she slacked on the Italian phrase of the day? kidding.)

Yeah Meredith... Not so crazy; but I wouldn't expect less from such a classy lady.

P + P Music Factory (Penny & Pablo) - like two peas in a pod... A very strange pod :)

I think Kendra needs some physical therapy... (Wow, that was really cheesy!)

Robyn can twitch her face like a bunny. ( A claim that resident bunny expert - Laura Halm denied, "Bunnies don't look like that...")

Mr. Meek's Melty Face.

Alejandro Niño goes crazy with his ears. (Sorry for the low light)

... And you thought we could just dance! HAH! Jamy also showed us his first ballet "Lasso Dance" that was amusing. The footage is a couple minutes long & I don't have time to upload it though. All wasn't just craziness however. We did had some toasts for Jim that were quite nice - first, one by Cerrudo and secondly, by Robyn. I wasn't able to get much on film, but this is what I captured.

... What a great evening. Cheers to Jim for hosting a great event! I'll end the writing here as shortly I'll be heading out to the train station to go to Madrid. I should be able to catch up on the blog while I'm there & report on our last day & show. (It will be full of video which takes a while to upload.)

Until then, "stay classy, World!"

-J.Ho

PS And the new (& probably not improved) Italian phrase of the day:

Lo scuso, sono sul treno di destra? I' americano di m. e don' la t capisce l'italiano.

Excuse me, am I on the right train? I'm American and don't understand Italian.

Bolzano, Part II

2009-07-20T04:43:00.004-05:00

...Finally a day off! Yesterday we didn't have anything to do regarding work. The sun was shining, there was a light breeze in the air & the scenery was gorgeous! I ended up spending most of the day with Christian & Robyn. Instead of telling you about it, I'll just show you pictures throughout the day...

Beautiful Bolzano with Castel Mareccio on left.

Just another view in Bolzano.

... While walking to another castle north of the city, we found mini-golf!...

Ruby (Robyn) Red

Mellow Yellow Christian

... After Christian won the putt-putt game, we continued walking to the Castel Roncolo that has something like the most secular frescoes from medieval time. It was quite beautiful & fun to read about the frescoes. At the end of the stop, Christian bought a medieval sling-shot from the gift shop. On our walk back we tested it out & were told by a passing family that you can get arrested for having a sling-shot... So we promptly put that away - sorry no pictures - don't want to get arrested...

Inner courtyard at Castel Roncolo.

... After a long day of walking & sight-seeing, Jim took everyone out to dinner. We had a great time & I think that it deserves it's own blog post, so you'll have to stay tuned... Our last show is tonight & we're traveling just a few hours after the show so I'm not sure if I'll be blogging about the dinner & our last show tonight, or from Madrid in a day or two. Right now I'm off to class & rehearsals. We have a completely different show tonight, so tech is a bit longer. (We're performing Slipstream, Extremely Close & Minus 16.)

Lastly, the "Italian phrase of the day" is back (sans Jessica):

Dove è Jessica? La ho bisogno di di generare una frase del giorno!

Where is Jessica? I need her to create a phrase of the day!

Ciao, and "stay classy, World!"

-J.Ho

TBC (To be continued)...

2009-07-19T20:42:00.003-05:00

So I promised to update the blog & I was fully planning to, but blogger and/or this connection keeps disconnecting me, so please stay with me.... Tomorrow morning I'll update with lots of fun photos & videos of the day & the dinner - including hidden 'talents' and funny faces that dancers/staff can make! (You'll understand when you see the photos/videos)

Buona notte!

-J.Ho

On to Bolzano, Part I

2009-07-19T10:38:00.014-05:00

Shame on me!...

I said (in the past blog) that I was going to update once more after the show... Well... Dinner ended up lasting a bit longer after the show in Florence & I didn't get back to the hotel until around 2 a.m. & I had to get up to buy the gift for my wife.

Thanks to everyone (all 12 of you) that voted - I followed your input & ended up purchasing her a nice leather bag. I'd post a picture of it, but want to be able to surprise her; & since she reads this blog, you'll have to wait :).... [Back on track]

Our show in Florence went well. The audience was on the 'smaller' size which was too bad, but those who were there were very appreciative. During our tech/spacing rehearsal, there was a "crazy" man yelling at the top of his lungs at anyone & everyone. Unfortunately I didn't get any videos or photos of the ordeal (for the safety of all involved), but just know it was an 'experience'.

Our venue was quite beautiful - our view was amazing!

View from stage in Florence. Il Duomo is in background.

It was the last show that Jamy & Shannon performed 'Lickety-Split'. I think the fact that it's just the beginning of the "lasts" with us saddens me. Luckily I obtained (through secret sources) some video footage of Jamy performing the solo from 'Lickety-Split', so enjoy it - we (that weren't dancing in the piece) did.

The 'Gang' watching the show from the side of the piazza.

Jamy Meek, "Lickety-Split" solo part I. (Choreography Alejandro Cerrudo) [Video file is quite large & may take a while to load.]

Jamy Meek, "Lickety-Split" solo part II. (Choreography Alejandro Cerrudo)

Yesterday we had a travel day to Bolzano that is northern Italy near Austria. The travel time (according to our itenerary) was around 4 hours. Yeah, it took closer to 6.5 hours! Luckily I'm somewhat narcoleptic when it comes to riding that bus. Between cat naps, Penny & Pablo, & the crew's antics, I was amused.

Bolzano is a beautiful town. Many company members have been here before as two years ago they performed; as for me, it was my first time. It has quite a different feeling that Caserta or even a central Italian city - much more of a German feeling. (In fact, much of the population's first language is German. Everything is usually written in Italian & German.) Once we checked into our hotel (free internet - woohoo!), Christian, Meredith & I decided to have a drink before dinner. We kept running into Jamy & Shannon so we all decided to grab a drink together & departed seperate ways after a nice drink in the square.... Until we ran into Jamy & Shannon again!

Running into Jamy & Shannon the first time in the Piazza Walther Platz.

So, it was on to dinner! We ended up findings this delicious restaurant (where the 'Spanish contigency' was eating as well - Alejandro, Alejandro & Anna) that also served my favorite wine - Teroldego Rotaliano! It was a perfect event for the evening - great company, drink & food.

The "delicious restaurant".

Great company - post dinner.

Once I got back to the hotel, it was time for laundry... Luckily with the help of Kellie & Laura Halm's technique of drying (quicker at least) the clothes, I'm well on my way to some fresh garmets. Only after I had washed everything did Christian tell me of a laundry-matte in Florence! Grrrrr... They're almost as hard to come by as free internet here in Italy it seems. I wish I would have taken a picture of all the clothes that were draped around the room to dry - it was quite a sight. I also got my Skype video camera working which was nice. I was able to chat with my wife; and then Kellie, Christian & I skyped (is that a verb?) Jamy (who is staying in a room directly across the hall) & had a great time making each other laugh.... I think it was a lot funnier than it sounds as I'm typing this...

Today - Sunday - has been a day off & it's been filled with wonder & delight, but this post is getting quite long-winded, so I'll post again (really I will) tonight. Jim is taking everyone out to dinner as tomorrow will also be his last show with Hubbard Street. (I'm hoping for some good photos/videos to share with you from tonight.)

Also, I'll make sure to have Ms. Tonnnnnnnng prepare an 'Italian phrase of the day' or two! Cheers, and as always:

"Stay classy, World!"

-J.Ho

Hotest Studio EVER! OK, not really that bad...

2009-07-17T10:51:00.007-05:00

We just got done taking class in Florence & 'was it HOT!' The studio wasn't air-conditioned, thought that's not that much of a bad thing. We were all pretty sweaty by the end of class... Everyone is so nice in Florence & accommodating. Before class, the men's dressing room was being used, so they put us in the 'piccolo' dressing room that was... Well, see for yourself...

Beautiful wall paintings in the "Men's" dressing room.

As promised - since there's free wi-fi at the hotel - I'm able to update this a bit more. Here are some photos & video of some of class. I hope you enjoy them! We have a short tech/spacing rehearsal for tonight's show in an hour & then have a 9.30 show, so I should be updating once more today/tonight after the show & some dinner (... and drinks)

Lucas teaching class.

Nice tendus everyone!

Pablo, Penny & Christian doing class in an adjacent studio that was much cooler.

Robyn posing in front of a poster starring herself for the Florence Dance Festival.

Finally in Firenze... What shall I get my wife?

2009-07-17T06:39:00.004-05:00

... We've finally arrived in Firenze (Florence)! We had a strike-drive after the show yesterday & didn't get into the hotel in Florence until a little after 4 a.m. The hotel is an amazing place (with free internet)!

During our tour last year to Italy, I came to Florence for a day & loved it. I was somewhat upset with myself however for not purchasing leather goods while I was here - Florence is known for their high quality leather goods. So today after breakfast, I headed out & bought a lovely weekender leather bag. Walking throughout the market is always a fun experience, but can be a bit overwhelming. My entire shopping trip wasn't all self-indulgent; I was trying to find something to get for my wife. I can't really decide though, so I thought I'd ask the "blog following" crowd.

So dear readers of this blog, I'm resting the choice of purchase(s) up to you! Whatever item(s) on the poll get the most votes, will be what I get for my wife. Because we're only here until tomorrow afternoon, it's a short voting period. If you vote for 'something else' or have any ideas/input, please leave them in the 'comment' section of this blog post &/0r e-mail me as HSDCBlogger@hotmail.com [Terms & Conditions: I'm on a dancer's salary - nothing too over the top. I have a weight limit to pack it on the airplane, so nothing too heavy/large. My wife's vote may/can/will veto :)]

We have to leave for class in just a bit, but will have some time before we have to rehearse as the stage is outdoors & totally exposed to the sun (& 93 degree+ weather)!

Since we have free internet (happy, happy, joy, joy) I'll be updating after the show! And please, please help me with what to buy for my wife! :) Ciao

Oh yeah & enjoy your day & "Stay classy, World!"

-J.Ho

Ciao & Arrivederci from Roma (Now with photos)

2009-07-15T17:39:00.008-05:00

UPDATE: No picture seems to be uploading, so pictures are TBD ('to be determined' - a favorite phrase at HSDC)!

UPDATE on the UPDATE: There are some photos!

Ciao from Roma! Every time I finally get to posting, I feel badly because it's been so long since the last blog. Anyways I haven't been lazy if that's what you're thinking. It's really a matter of economics.

Day 1

Yesterday we traveled to Rome & checked into our hotel. It's quite a nice hotel (- far from anything to visit in Rome - ) with a swimming pool (which I will 'test' tomorrow a.m.), huge breakfast (poor coffee though), and nicely appointed rooms with 'fancy' bidets. (If you haven't used a bidet before, you really must! Although a bit intimidating at first, they're quite lovely.) Back to the economics though, our nice hotel charges 10€ for 1 hour of internet! Talk about extortion! After talking with my wife back home though, her words of encouragement for the keeping as constant feed as possible for the blog has 're-ignited' my drive :)

But enough about economics & my wife. Back to Rome we'll head. After we checked into our rooms, most everyone headed out to catch a shuttle from the hotel to two points: V.F. Albenzio (near the Vatican) & Trastevere Station (southern point, west of the Tevere River). I headed with a group to Trastevere & after we figured out how to buy tickets for the tram, we headed north a bit & explored alleys & had some drinks at different cafes. It was all quite nice despite the 90+ degree weather. After we ate a delicous (albiet pricey) Italian dinner, we managed to see some cultural sites including the Pantheon, Piazza Navona, Campo di Fiori & Fontana di Trevi. If you've never been to Rome before, it can be quite overwhelming. There's so much history & culture that you almost don't know where to start or how to prioritize the importance of experiencing something. I must say that the hordes of tourists (especially loud Americans) don't add too much to the cultural experience. [I've been trying to deal with this issue: I can' stand the tourists; but I'm a tourist. So does that mean I don't like myself? Let me know your thoughts on this. Am I just crazy? Does a crazy person know they're crazy? I digress...]

Pantheon (Derek Bell photo)

Outside photo of the Pantheon.

After a long day of travel & enthralling day of sight-seeing (& hair-raising taxi ride back to the hotel) it was time for bed... Oh & thank God for air conditioning!

Day 2

After sleeping through my alarm, it was time for breakfast. This is probably the largest Italian-hotel-complimentary-breakfast I've experienced. Sans the coffee, it was quite nice as well. I headed to the Vatican after breakfast, battling the scortching sun. We didn't have tickets to get into the museum, so we headed to Basilica St. Pietro. I've seen "History Channel" specials on it before, but they didn't prepare me for the sheer massive size of the place - it's absolutely HUGE! ("That's what she said..." Sorry, had to through that in there) It was so beautiful & the view from the cupola was spectacular. Because we had to be back at the hotel by 2pm, I had to cut my sight-seeing short.

View of St. Peter's Square from the cupola atop St. Peter's Basilica.

Inside of St. Peter's Basilica. (Derek Bell photo)

We actually had a proper accompanist & studio - abliet the 'marley' flooring had seen better days. After class we had to jump back on the bus (that magically makes me fall asleep every time I get on there) & head to the venue. Again the stage is outdoors & the backstage was great! We had these 'cabanas' as changing rooms. I tried to take pictures of them, but they turned out all fuzzy, so no pictures for you.

Our tech rehearsal went well except for one fact... Brian wasn't dancing with us :( On day one in Rome, Brian had to get X-rayed at the hospital & discovered a "classic spiral break" on his left foot. Unfortunately the body for some reason doesn't heal the 5th metatarsal, so he'll have to have surgery. So.... Tomorrow (well today as I'm writing this) he will be heading on a flight back to Chicago. We'll all miss him dearly (especially me as we were suppose to go to Madrid for a 'man-cation' after tour). The 'good news' is that after he has the surgery he should ready to go after 6 weeks, give-or-take.

Advertisement for Hubbard Street Dance Chicago (Derek Bell photo)

View from backstage at the Centro Danza Mimma Testa, where we performed in Roma. Looking good Stephan! (He's part of our crew)

We have 1 more show in Rome tomorrow & then have to strike-drive to Florence for a show the next day. So I'm hoping to be able to update you all as soon as possible, but until then:

"Stay classy World"

...And don't forget the Italian phrase of the day (courtesy of J.To & her boyfriend D.Rock who just arrived):
Abbiamo bisogno di un dottore che parli inglese.
We need a doctor who speaks English.

-J.Ho
-J.To + D.Rock

PS Pablo still hasn't gotten pictures to me. He keeps telling me he's taking pictures for the blog, but he hasn't gotten them to me yet....

Who needs to shower?... "I do, I do!!!"

2009-07-13T18:05:00.004-05:00

Welcome to Caserta! Sorry for the short delay in blog posts. Since we moved to a new hotel, internet access is completely different. (More expensive really) Thanks to Ben for 'hacking' the system for free wired internet. (It really just involved hooking the cable from the TV to a laptop, but still, free internet in a hotel in Europe is like winning on a scratch ticket!)

We arrived Sunday after 8.5 hours on a bus. By the time we got into the hotel and went out 'on the town', it was fairly late on Sunday & all the restaurants were closed. Only gelaterias & pizzarias were open. You might not think this is so bad, but when you've eaten at least a couple of slices of pizza & some cups of gelato a day, it can get old quickly. There was a nice surprise in the morning though... Eggs! We haven't had any eggs offered for breakfast since we've been here. It's amazing how the little things can make a difference...

We didn't have to leave for class until 1.30pm on Monday, (it's currently Tuesday while I'm writing this) so it left some time to check out some sights in the city. The biggest (literally & figuratively) sight/site was the Reggia/Parco Reale - a giant palace with miles of park.

The palace is larger than the one in Versailles, but less grandiose. The park located behind the palace was magnificent; quite a lovely stroll. It was almost a 2 mile walk to the end of the park from the palace. Walking it was quite nice as well... Except for the fact that it was in the upper 80's!!! Here are some photos of the palace & park...

The waterfall/pond at the end of the Parco Reale.

Looking at the Parco Reale & Reggia.

Yet another view from behind a statue.

The Reggio makes my apartment in Chicago seem so small...

As 1.30 rolled around, we headed to a dance studio to take class that was off-site (away from where we were performing). Minus the sweltering heat, small studio and possible black mold in one of the corners of the room, class was going well; until... Brian went down in class rolling over an ankle!!!

Teatro Comunale Caserta - where we performed.

Jim & Pablo carrying Brian into the theatre!

We're still not sure if he broke his foot or not, but he'll be seeing a doctor in Rome when we get there tomorrow afternoon. He didn't dance in tonight's show, but we're all hoping he'll be 'good as new' & be back in action ASAP! After class, we headed to the venue which was outdoors at the Teatro Comunale Caserta. It was an outdoor stage that was erected in a (smaller) palace's courtyard that housed a church & museum.

We had our technical rehearsal starting at 5.00pm & although we were mostly shaded, it was still quite hot. Different casts performed in the show, so we had to at least space every piece. Additionally it was the first time the (B) Cast of Slipstream performed. Thank goodness that it wasn't a raked stage.

In all, the show went quite well. We had an audience of probably around 400. (Quite a bit more intimate than in Ravenna.) By the time the show started at 9.30 (yes, 9.30pm!) it was a lot cooler out - humid - but cooler. Since the space wasn't set up as a theatre (the stage was built up for the festival in Caserta), we didn't have our 'normal' accommodations: Showers, multiple bathrooms, green room etc. In fact, we only had 1 bathroom that didn't have a seat on the toilet. There was no shower (yeap, we smelled 'interesting' by the end of the night) & the cross-over behind the stage was stone - not so fun while running across in ballet shoes!

Well, it's quite late here right now (almost 2am) & I'm pretty tired. Pablo had taken quite a bit of photos for the blog, but I'm afraid they'll have to wait until tomorrow at the earliest. Until next time, "Stay classy World!"

Buona notte, per me è ora di andare a dormire.

Good night, it's my bedtime.

1 Down, 5 to Go...

2009-07-11T18:46:00.009-05:00

... So we just got done with our first show on the Italian tour in Ravenna and it was smashing! There were in excess of 2,000 people there, which was quite exciting. I heard that we had some lighting issues in that some of the dances were quite dark. I guess that should be expected a bit since we had to light the pieces during the daytime when light was piercing the venue... We performed in a space that was basically a sports arena converted into a theatre. (The actual theatre that is located in town was too small & can't fit that many people.) In addition, the stage was raked (not a flat stage - angled down towards the audience - quite hard to pirouette or even balance at all...)

I'm pretty tired here & didn't get to take too many pictures; Ben did though so hopefully I'll be able to get some from him. He did injure his ankle a bit during tech rehearsal & didn't dance in the show, but we're hoping he'll be back in action for our next show on Monday. Tomorrow we have a long bus ride to Caserta which is near Naples... Please send the "no traffic" vibes our way please!

Also, I can't not mention that it was physical therapist - Kendra's birthday today! Happy birthday Kendra! We'll need to celebrate it properly on a day that we're not performing.

Without wasting any more time, enjoy these photos until I can get some more up...

Terry & Kellie warming up before class.

A view of the 'house' from the stage.

A view of the stage from the 'house'.

Ben's ankle being looked at by physical therapist Kendra Hollman.

Oh & here's a short video that I just shot to see how it looks - let me know what you think... (If you can't notice, the raked stage makes everything much more 'exciting'. I especially love Kellie's tenacity... And arm cirlces - good form!) Enjoy!

...

...

... And don't think that you can get off the hook without learning some (probably incorrect) Italian phrase of the day with your teacher - Jessica Tong!

Buon compleanno venti otto, Kendra! Siete un’anziana.
Happy 28(th) birthday Kendra! You are an old woman.

-J.Ho
-J.To

Love is Love...

2009-07-10T18:02:00.008-05:00

Ahhhhh… A day of relaxation; it goes a long way after two days of traveling. It was nice to (try to) sleep-in a bit. Although breakfasts in Italy aren’t as good as the world-class breakfasts found in Germany, they do have a leg up in that they offer coffee to order. There is nothing like a complimentary cappuccino to help wake you up in the morning...

For our acclimation day, most people split up with some heading to the beach – a 30-minute bus ride away, some to Venice – a 3-hour train ride away, and the rest hanging around town touring and shopping. Every store here has a ‘saldi’ (sale) sign in the window that is helpful. I only wish the exchange rate was a bit better for us. (€1 equals about $1.40)

Karen Castleman playing in Ravenna. (Ben Wardell photo)

Ravenna is known for their amazing mosiacs. (Ben Wardell photo)

Jamy, Shannon & Brian catching up. (Ben Wardell photo)

While the day off was nice, jetlag still creeps in and I was forced to take a 2-hour siesta. Before the nap though, I stopped by the greatest little ‘super’ market and bought some of my favorite wine that I experienced in last year’s tour to Italy with some baguette & cheese. (The wine is a Teroldego Rotaliano & it’s sublime!)

Myself (Jason Hortin) shopping for some wine.

To top the day, it was Laura Halm’s birthday today! Yay! A large group of us met outside the hotel to head out for aperitivo hour (pre-dinner, drinking hour with hors d’oeuvres) & dinner.

Aperitivo hour. (Ben Wardell photo)

Robyn made it! (Ben Wardell photo)

While at the bar, it started to rain outside but ended up redeeming itself by making a nice rainbow for Laura’s birthday.

Laura's 'birthday rainbow'. (Ben Wardell photo)

The enoteca that we wanted to eat at was waiting for a party of 90 and couldn’t fit us all, so we ended up eating at a quaint little restaurant split between two tables. I don’t know if you’ve ever tried to order food from a menu that you have no idea what it says, but it’s always somewhat of a gamble. Sure we’ll know a couple of dishes are, but for the most part we were lost… Thankfully there was a sweet woman – Fabiola – that helped us out. By the time we were eating our dinner, Fabiola was onto dessert and Kevin was eying it. He asked her what it was & she ended up ordering it for Kevin! Needless to say, it was as good as it looked! (I know because Karen & I stole some bites of it! But no worries, we all still had room afterwards for some gelato.) After we paid ‘il conto’ (the check), we asked if we could take a photo of her with Kevin because she was just so great. Immediately she grabbed Kevin & said - among other things, “…love is love!” I hope the photo captures her warmth & friendliness! It was the perfect expression to conclude Laura’s birthday evening! Thanks Fabiola!

Fabiola & Kevin's photo.

Tomorrow is our first show day. The crew has been setting up the stage & lighting all day & will be continuing their hard work tomorrow. We’re expecting 1500+ people in attendance, so hopefully all will go ‘steller’! (That’s for all the HSDC people working back in the office, I hope you like it.)

“Stay classy world!”

… Oh & lastly we have today’s phrase of the day by Jessica Tong:

Buon compleanno venti otto, Laura! Siete un’anziana.
Happy 28(th) birthday Laura! You are an old woman.

-J.Hor
-J.To
-Ben (We really have to get him a fun nickname...)

A Little Crazy & Jessica's Italian Language Learning Lesson

2009-07-09T13:23:00.006-05:00

Ben Wardell just came over & gave me some photos that he took on the perilous journey. As you can see, I wasn't exaggerating when I told you we were turning a shade of crazy. See for yourself...

Karen Castleman smells something funny... Terry & Kevin look on...

Jamy Meek is known 'Happy-Loopy Crazy'

Kevin Shannon's transformation to Crazy taking place on the plane. Nice hair!
Our physical therapist, Kendra Hollman, looking innocent...

...Until she shows her true self: 'Ferocious Vampire Crazy'!

Crazy aside, Jessica Tong thought it would be nice to post an Italian phrase of the day. (I wouldn't bet the family farm on syntax, grammer, etc... Learn at your own risk!) And today's phrase is:

Dove posso comprare dentifricio, perché ho l'alito cattivo?

Where can I buy some toothpaste, because I have bad breath?

-J.Hor
-J.To
-Ben

Safe, Sound + Ready to Rock Italy.... After we get some slee... zzzzzzz

2009-07-09T12:36:00.012-05:00

After around 16 hours of travel – we’ve made it! (Well most of us anyways, more on that later…) We may all resemble zombies a bit, but we made it! Since we have three weeks off following this tour before the start of next season, most dancers altered their flights to stay a few days/weeks & travel around Europe. Thus most dancers were separated mostly on two flights (think Amazing Race style minus the competitive edge) for our journey to the first stop – Ravenna. The first group flew from Chicago to Bolzano via Madrid, while the group I was in flew from Chicago to Bologna via Brussels.

Kellie starting to go a little crazy after 14 hours or so of traveling.

I’m not sure the exact experience of the first group, but the journey proved to be an entertaining one for us. First of all, I saw something I have never ever seen in my life before, & most likely won’t see again. A woman had a pet goose at the airport as a companion pet! What ever happened to the Black Labrador or German Shepard? Needless to say I couldn’t get a steller shot with my camera phone because I was chuckling too much!

The infamous O'Hare goose!

The flight ‘over the pond’ was pretty uneventful, but I must say that was very impressed with the Brussels airport. Other than the structure being very open & lofty, the people were very nice & agreeable. I got the impression that Brussels is like the Canada of Europe. (I find Canadians a very fun-loving, amiable & slightly quirky bunch.) Why you might ask? If you ever go through security in Brussels, they have quite an amusing ‘how-to’ security instructional animated video. I didn’t video it in fear of “security”, but it was quite a laugh (especially after 10 hours of travel by then). The ‘helpers’ at the airport were all teenagers in bright t-shirts & the customs officers were some of the nicest that I’ve encountered!

While at the airport in Brussels, standing along a people mover, we passed by a display that showed body temperatures (is that a thermograph or infrared camera?) & have undeniable proof that Penny Saunders is a human furnace. If you have met or know Penny, you’ll know that she’s always very warm. It was fun to see the difference in body temperatures between us as we passed – she was bright red all over while the rest of us were a mix of reds, yellows & whites.

Once we arrived at the Bologna airport and regrouped with the other group & met up with our Italian liaison – Marco. We found out that dancer, Brian Enos – who was separated from both groups flying through Dublin – had been sold a ticket for a flight that didn’t exist yesterday. Our intrepid tour manager, Anne Grove, figured the situation out and we were on our way for an hour bus ride to Ravenna… Minus Brian (& Robyn who flew into Madrid as scheduled).

Anne Grove, the intrepid tour manager... Why is she hauling Jim's suitcase too?

Tomorrow will serve as an acclimation day, so I’ll post more stuff about Ravenna then. In addition, it’s dancer – Laura Halm’s – birthday! I think I heard of a possible beach excursion. Until then, “Stay classy WORLD!”… And get some sleep!

Jessica Tonnnnnng (inside joke, will fill in later) pointing out the obvious - US!

-J.Hor

Benvenuti Nel Nostro Mondo (Welcome to Our World)

2009-07-08T08:42:00.006-05:00

Welcome to 'Hubbard Street Dance World', your inside scoop to the world of Hubbard Street Dance Chicago as we tour the world! I suppose it'd be great to have some fireworks (if you didn't get enough already from the 4th of July) to launch this endeavor, but we've been hard at work in the studio getting ready for our Italian tour.

We've yet to do this before at Hubs, so hopefully this blog will be informative & entertaining. My name is Jason Hortin, a dancer with Hubbard Street, and I'll be spearheading this blog with input from the other dancers. Since this is new, please feel free to leave comments &/or e-mail me. Throughout the tour - pending internet access - I'll be updating on all the latest happenings with us...

Jamy Meek teetering on Robyn Mineko William's foot in 'Lickety Split'.

Lucas fastidiously taking notes while Jim watches Terry & Anna rehearse 'Slipstream'.

Shannon Alvis grabbing a drink between rehearsing pieces.

... In addition to rehearsing, it was Jamy & Shannon's last day at the studio as they're going to be joining NDT after tour. They've been a mainstay at HSDC for quite a while & will be missed sorely!...

Jamy & Shannon holding each other while Kellie & Alejandro C. look on.

... Throughout our tour we'll be performing in Ravenna, Caserta, Rome & Bolzano. (So basically we're eating gelato & pizza for the next 13 days) So stay tuned and join Hubbard Street Dance Chicago on tour in Italy!

-J.Hor